Trowel.



A. A. HARVIE.

TROWEL.

APPLICATION FILED JAN. 17, 1910.-

Patented Nov. 29, 1910.

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A. A. HARVIE.

- TBOWEL.

APPLICATION PIL ED JAN. 17,1910.

Patented N0v.2 9, 1910.

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UNITED STATES PATNT @Itl ALBERT A. HARVIE, OF OTTUMWA, IOWA.

TROWEL.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, ALBERT A. HARVIE, a citizen of the United States, residing at Ottumwa, in the county of l/Vapello and State of Iowa, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Tro'wels, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to trowels, but more especially to the manner in which the handle is attached to the surfacing plate of such a device. At the present time it is one tomary to form the connection between the base portion of the handle and the surfacing plate by means of rivets or similar attaching means passed through the surfacing plate and up through the base portion of the handle; ant such rivets or other attaching means must be countersunk into the bottom or working side of the surfacing plate so as to present a smooth surface for the smoothing operations in which the trowel is used. It is found that any bending forces which come on the surfacing plate, tending to pull it away from the base portion of the handle will break away the up-set portion of the rivet nearest that end of the trowel. This is because of the small amount of metal which it is possible to secure in the up-set portion of the rivet due to the thinness of the plate. The surfacing plate is thus loosened at that end. It is also found that as soon as the first rivet has been loosened or pulled away the next one must bear the strain when the surfacing plate is again bent or the rivet otherwise strained. This rivet will in turn pull out and in the same manner the rivets will, in time, all become loosened or even broken off so that the trowel will be no longer serviceable.

For the above reasons, trowels as now made do not give the length of service which it would otherwise be possible to secure from them, and they do not perform the service for which they are intended with the satisfaction which could be secured from them if they were more strongly constructed.

It is the object of this invention to pro vide novel and efiicient means for firmly attaching the thin surfacing plates of trowels and other devices to the base portions of the handles so as to present a smooth working surface on one side, and in such a manner so that they cannot be easily started by tearing the portions of the surfacing plates nearest the ends from the handle portions.

Other objects will appear from a detailed Specification of Letters Patent.

Application filed January 17, 1910.

Patented Nov. 29, 1910.

Serial No. 538,424.

description of the invention, which consists in the features of construction and combination of parts hereinafter described and claimed.

In the drawings, Figure 1 shows a trowel in perspective, and it shows one method of forming my improved connection between the surfacing plate and the base portion of the handle; Fig. 2, a longitudinal section taken through a portion of the trowel having my improved connection applied in the same manner as in Fig. 1; Fig. 3, a longitudinal section similar to that of Fig. 2, but showing a slight modification of the manner of finishing the surfacing plate from that shown in F 2, the modification comprising the use of a separate block of metal to fill the hole formed in the surfacing plate by striking out the connecting tongue; Fig. 4 a longitudinal section showing a second method of striking out the connecting tongue and attaching the same to the base portion of the handle; Fig. 5, a longitudinal section similar to that shown by Fig. 4, but illustrating a slight modification thereof, the modification comprising the use of a sepa rate block of metal to fill the hole formed in the surfacing plate by striking out the connecting tongue; Fig. 6, a cross-section through a portion of the trowel, taken on the line 66 of Fig. 5, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 7, a longitudinal section showing a third method of striking out the connecting tongue and attaching the same to the base portion of the handle; Fig. 8, a longitudinal section similar to that shown by Fig. 7 but showing a modification thereof, which consists in the use of a separate block of metal to fill the hole formed in the surfacing plate by striking out the connecting tongue; Fig. 9, a cross-section through a portion of the trowel, taken on the line 99 of Fig. 8, looking in the direction of the arrows; Fig. 10, a longitudinal section showing a fourth method of striking out the connecting tongue and attaching the same to the base portion of the handle; Fig. 11, a longitudinal section showing a fifth method of striking out the connecting tongue; Fig. 12 is a section taken through the shank of the handle and looking down on the base portion of the modification shown by Fig. 11; Fig. 13 a longitudinal section similar to that of Fig. 11, but showing a slight modification thereof, which consists in the use of a separate block of metal to fill the hole formed in the surfacing plate by striking out the connecting tongue; and Fig. 14 a bottom view of the surfacing plate used in either of the methods shown by Fig. 2 or that shown by Fig. 3.

In all of the figures the numeral 15 designates the surfacing plate, and the numeral 16 designates the base portion of the handle. In Figs. 1, 2 and 3 the tongue is struck up from the surfacing plate at an abrupt angle so that the base portion of the handle may be of considerable thickness at the point 17 where it abuts against the tongue near the edge of the hole formed in the striking up process. This enables the securing of a strong support for the surfacing plate at its weakest point. The tongue 18 is then bent over so as to lie against the top of the base portion of the handle, as shown in Figs. 1, 2 and 3, and a rivet or other connecting means 19 is passed through the tongue at the base portion and is countersunk into the base portion of the arrangement, shown by Figs. 1 and 2. In addition, other rivets, as 20, may be used for securing the central portion of the surfacing plate. The base portion at 17 in the arrangement of Figs. 1 and 2 is provided with a lug 21, which comes flush with the surface of the surfacing plate, and thereby virtually becomes a portion thereof for all surfacing operations. In the modification of Fig. 3, a separate block of metal, as 22, is adapted to fill the hole formed in the surfacing plate when the tongue 18 is struck therefrom and the block 22 may be held securely in place by the same rivet or other connecting means 19, which is used for securing the tongue 18 to the base portion of thehandle. In use, little, if any, strain would come upon this inserted block, so that the strength with which it would be held in place by countersinking the rivet therein would be ample to hold it securely in place.

In the second method of forming the connection, as shown in Figs. 1, 5 and 6, the tongue 23 may be struck up abruptly from the base and in such a way as to abut against the ends 24: thereof, and it is then secured to the base by means of screws 25, or any other suitable connecting means. Rivets, 26, may also be used for further securing the central portion of the surfacing plate to the base. In the method of Fig. at, the base portion at 24: is provided with a lug as 27, which comes flush with the surface of the surfacing plate and thereby performs a function similar to that of the lug 21 of Figs. 1 and 2.

In the modification of Figs. 5 and 6 a block 28 inserted and held flush with the smoothing surface by a rivet or other connecting nieans 29, in a manner similar to the block 2 of Fig. 3.

In the third method of forming the coin nection as shown in Figs. 7, 8 and 9, the tongues 30 are struck up abruptly from the surfacing plate and in such locations that they will embrace the base portion of the handle on its sides. They are then secured to the base by means of rivets, bolts, or other securing means,as 31, which may be passed through the two tongues and the base. Rivets, or other securing means, as may be used for securing the central portion of the surfacing plate to the base. In the method of Fig. 7 the lug 33 is integral with the base, as in the arrangements of Figs. 1, 2 and 4. In the modification of Figs. 8 and 9 the block 3% is secured to the base by securing means, as 35, so as to form a flush and continuous smoothing surface similar to the manner of Figs. 3, 5 and 6.

In the fourth method of forming the connection shown by Fig. 10, the tongue 36 is bent over at a small angle with the surfacing plate instead of an abrupt one, as shown in the previous arrangements, and the rivets. or other connecting devices 87 perform functions similar to those performed in the arrangements of Figs. 1 and 2. The central connecting means 38, may also be used as hereto-fore.

In the fifth method of forming the connection, as shown in Figs. 11, 12- and 13, the tongue 39 may be struck up at an abrupt angle, and it is intended to be passed up through a hole %0 formed in the base portion of the handle and then bent down flush therewith and secured by means of rivets 41, or in any other suitable manner. The central connecting means -It2 may also be used. In the method of Fig-11 the lug 43 is formed integral with the base and comes flush with the surface, while in Fig. 13 the block 14 is intended to fill the hole formed in the surfacing plate in striking up the tongue and may be held in place by the securing means 41.

It will be seen that my invention makes use of a novel and efficient means for connecting the thin surfacing plate of a trowel or similar object to the base portion thereof in such a way as to present a smooth and continuous surface for the smoothing operations, and in such away as to secure the maximum strength of this connection at the point where it is most needed, viz., at the point where a bending or other force coming upon the surfacing plate will tend to tear it away from the base portion of the handle.

It is furthermore seen that there are many ways in which such a connection may be formed by striking tongues or ears from the surfacing plate itself and properly securing them to the base portion, proper means being provided to present a continuous and practically uninterrupted smoothing surface, either by filling the hole formed in the process of striking the tongue or ear With a lug formed on the base portion of the handle, or with a separate block of metal inserted and properly secured therein. Evidently the strength of such connection is not limited by the strength of the small upset portion of a rivet countersunk within a thin plate, but is determined by the strength with which the metal of the surfacing plate can resist being torn or broken.

Although I have shown and illustrated only a few methods of forming such connection it is evident that many others may be devised and I contemplate including in my invention all such connections in which ears, tongues, or similar connectors, struck from the surfacing plate proper, or so firmly attached thereto, that they may be considered as integral therewith, are used. Such, for example, would be ears or tongues brazed or wlelded or firmly secured to the surfacing 1) ate.

Although I have shown this type of a connector, as used in conjunction with central securing means, it is not necessary that the central securing means he used, the necessity for their use depending largely upon the size of the surfacing plate.

I claim:

1. In a device of the class described, a relatively thin plate, tongues formed integrally therewith for attachment to a handle, means for attaching said tongues to the handle, and means for attaching the plate to the handle intermediate said tongues, the outer surface of the device being smooth and continuous adjacent to the point where the tongues are located, substantially as described.

2. In a device of the class described, a relatively thin plate, tongues formed integrally therewith for attachment to a handle, the outer surface of the device being smooth and continuous, adjacent to the point Where the tongues are located, substantially as described.

3. In a device of the class described, the

combination of a relatively thin plate, tongues struck from the plate for attachment to a handle, and means for presenting a smooth and continuous surface on the device adjacent to the points where the tongues are struck, substantially as described.

4:. In a device of the class described, a relatively thin plate, tongues struck from the plate for attachment to a handle and means for filling the holes formed in the plate by striking the tongues therefrom, so as to present a smooth and continuous surface on the device adjacent to the points where the tongues are struck, substantially as described.

ALBERT A. HARVIE.

lVitnesses P. ACKLEY, T. K. HARLAN. 

